


Falling Slowly

by Sailorlyoko4life



Category: Jackie Chan Adventures
Genre: Gen, slightly older Jade chan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-18
Updated: 2020-04-18
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:41:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23709340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sailorlyoko4life/pseuds/Sailorlyoko4life
Summary: Tarakudo has been waiting patiently. Patience pays off eventually right? (a Dark Jade Project -DJP- fic.) Will the queen return to the throne? Or was his patience a waste of time?
Relationships: Jade Chan/Tarakudo, Jade and Tarakudo no slash (see it however you want)
Kudos: 8





	Falling Slowly

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, this is a one-shot I decided to write to get back into the Project Dark Jade game. I will be updating my other Dark Jade stories soon as well. Enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own anything. (But maybe one day)

Falling Slowly

"You planned this you big fat jerk!" She yelled at demon king.

"I planned to corner you until you run out of time and your talisman can no longer hold in your dark side thus you becoming queen again? That doesn't sound like something I would do." Tarakudo faked innocence. This only served to make Jade more angry.

"Yeah it is! I bet you were the one who told Drago where to find us too." She crossed her arms as she continued to accuse him. He simply gave a gleeful chuckle.

"Now that I may have done. But in my defense he would have found you anyways. It could have been when you were in public with civilians around who he could hurt or it could have been in your closet and you get burned to a crisp as soon as you open it. My hand in the attack simply put you a much more open area with no by standards and no way to pull a surprise on you." He stated smoothly. Her angered simmered immediately. That was true.

"Are you... protecting me?" She asked in disbelief and confusion. Tarakudo didn't answer her. He turned around and floated to the other pieces of work in the room, pretending to be interested in them. This effectively hid his smirking face and gave Jade time to ponder on her own question.

When she really thought about it, it made sense. He wanted her to turn demon again. He wanted her to help him reign darkness over the world. He didn't want Shendu's son to kill her because he needs her. Or at least wants her to help him. She sat down on the floor and leaned her back against the wall.

Was it bad that it made her happy that someone wanted her to help them with something important? She knew it was just her want to be wanted, her fear of not being wanted or needed that made her happy that someone wanted her, even if it was a demon lord of darkness. It was part of her craving for attention too. Tarakudo knew these things about her. Things Jackie didn't seem to understand.

"No," She whispered out loud to herself, "I need to stop that line of thinking right now. I know better then to let those thoughts play out. Especially right now." She grabbed her necklace and tightly squeezed the pendant she had made. It was the only thing keeping her shadow powers from coming back and taking her over. It was the only thing keeping her humanity in control. It was her only hope of getting out of here as herself.

And it was almost all black now.

Her two back ups she had made were still at home sitting in her dresser under her socks. She figured she would have until midnight to switch this one out so she could just do it when she got home from school. But Jackie decided to pick her up and then make her stay with him while he worked the rest of the day. She didn't see it as being a big problem. But she she also didn't think a long winded battle that would trap them in the museum until late night would transpire. Drago had his goones jumped on them when Jackie was locking up for the night and Drago himself seemed keen on hunting her down to kill her. She had been dodging him in a deadly game of hide and seek for over an hour now. It was 11pm. She had 1 hour left until her necklace would fail to suppress her dark side.

She had made the necklace after she had discovered Tarakudos mark had re-apeared on her leg one morning 2 months ago. She changed her outfit to black leggins with jean shorts and a short sleeve orange shirt to hide the mark from her uncles. It was hot out still so no one questioned her outfit change. She tried making the potion Uncle had made last time so she could just remove it herself but it didn't work. She did some research into Japanese history to find anything else to fight the evil her mark bore and found a way to make a talisman to protect one-selves chi. The special white wood bark was supposed to absorb dark chi from the wearers aura when the Japanese symbol of light was carved into it. As soon she made it and put it on she could feel its effects, it had been 5 days since the mark appeared and she had been struggling to maintain her humanity and keep it all a secret from her family.

The talisman turned a light gray after 5 minutes of wearing it. She felt more in control then she had all week and less afraid of herself. She decided to make another one for when this one would be full. The book had said depending on the amount and speed of the absorption that it should last until the carved symbol started to turn black. She had been tracking the progression ever since and had come to realize it would only last her about 2 more weeks. She made a third one just in case and put both the second and third ones in her sock drawer so she could swap them out when she needed to but not be seen by anyone else. She kept the necklace hidden under her shirt collar and out of sight to avoid questions.

She never said a word to Jackie or Uncle when their past enemies started to appear. She never said a word about it when she knew for a fact that Taradkudo had to be watching them. She never said anything when Jackie noticed she couldn't use the Chinese talismans anymore and had blamed it on her not wanting to use them because they 'were so last season' and she was 'over it'. She let them believe her attitude and style change were all her becoming a teenager (She had just turned 14 the day this started) instead of it being a cover up for her struggle to stay human and keep her dark powers at bay.

Tarakudo knew this. She could sense him spying on her all the time; At school, at home, with Jackie. She was just glad he kept his distance and didn't create any problems so far or attack them. She could feel her desire to talk to him grow stronger as time went by. Whether it was to tell him to go away or join him she couldn't tell. But the urge to interact with him bothered her. Then she noticed little things. Like how when she thanked Jackie for the blanket she woke up with and he said he had no idea what she was talking about. And the time the sprinkler went of in the school during a day she wasn't feeling well and ended up ending the school day. She figured the later was her own doing (accidentally) but later realized she could feel glee deep within.

It was him. Her other half knew it, and now she did too. Why he didn't come out and just talk to her or torment her directly was beyond her but she knew despite her talisman that he sensed her emotions as well as she was sensing his presence. It was that same night that Drago started attacking again. They were stupid attacks and traps. He wanted to keep his father sealed forever and he wanted to kill Jade. Nothing new. But he hadn't attacked for a week and a half now so she supposed he was planning for something bigger. Like locking them in the museum for a few hours while hunting her down. That checked out.

What didn't make sense was Jackie having the talismans and handing her the dog and rabbit ones before running off to fight Drago's goones before Drago himself appeared. That only made sense once she realized he had accidentally split himself with the tiger talisman (why did he have them right now?) and that his good half was hiding and his bad half was the one she was with that left her alone in order to go fight. She found his good half being pinned down by Drago and about to be fried shrimp before she called Drago 'the stupidest dragon prince she had ever seen' and started their game of cat and mouse.

Another thing that didn't make sense was why Tarakudo had chosen right then to intervene and stopped her from getting barbequed all of the sudden and then proceeded to trap Drago and take Jade to a safer area to hide. Until now that is. Now it all made sense. This was his plan all along.

He wanted to trap her and run down her time on her talisman so it would stop working and she would have to use her dark powers to escape.

She now sat here wishing he would have just let her been barbequed. She knew the only way out of this now was if Jackie could pull himself together and make Drago flee somehow. She doubted that though. Tarakudo was going to win. She gripped her necklace harder when she felt the spark of glee run through her chest from that thought. It was 11:30 pm now.

She coddled her head in her knees. She could feel an itch in her fingers to take off the necklace. After all wasn't it suppressing her? Wasn't it keeping her from using the Chinese talismans? Wasn't it only hurting her at this point? She could beat Drago all on her own if she just took it off. She had nothing to be afraid of.

"Stop it!" She shouted at the king that she had sensed moved back over to her while she was mentally spiraling. He laughed like she had just said the funniest thing in the world.

"Why I'm not doing anything Miss Chan." His humor suddenly fell and he got more serious. "If there is anyone to be angry with it's yourself." She felt her blood turn to ice the moment their eyes met. Why was she doing this to herself? Why was she fighting her own instincts? Why was she changing herself just to make other people happy?

"No, stop please." She whimpered quietly as she managed to squeeze her eyes shut while her tears fell down.

"I take no pleasure in your pain my dear. There are many ways I could turn you but I want it to be your choice this time. But I do have one question for you. Are you happy?" He asked her gently. She let her tears keep rolling down her face as she choked out her answer.

"Yes." He merely tsked at this.

"Then why did you hide my mark? Why didn't you tell your uncles that you knew I was back and near by. Why didn't you tell them what was going on with you yourself. Surely you realized that the mark couldn't be disposed of until I was sealed again after you failed to get rid of it. Did you plan on changing necklaces and making new ones forever Jade?"

'That was more then one question' was what she wanted to say. But she could feel the ice in her veins numbing her senses and quelling the destructive fire that raged within her.

"I just want you to be happy with yourself. Now answer with the truth this time dear. Are you happy?" She felt the question challenge every memory she held onto to keep herself from turning dark. The numbness muted those memories into fleeting pictures of someone else's life. She stopped crying.

"No." She said quietly.

It was midnight.

**Author's Note:**

> And there you have it! I know I'm evil. >:) But that's why you love me! LOL
> 
> This was just an idea that wouldn't leave me alone today so I went ahead and typed it out. I hope you enjoyed it!


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